The World Keeps Turning
by LStormcloud
Summary: At war's end Toph makes a choice that changes her life. 6 years later the restored nations are in trouble, forcing her to return to the world she rejected. Now that she's back can she really leave again? Or will her old friends convince her to stay? RR


Disclaimer: I own nothing that you recognize and I make no profit from this.

_CHAPTER 1 _

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If there was one thing that Toph Bei Fong wasn't, it was weak. It had been years since she had cried; well years since the only occasion she'd actually admit to anyway. She was easily one of the strongest Earthbenders in the world; she had trained the _Avatar_ for God's sake. She had brought grown men to their knees with a single raised eyebrow; yet here she was glaring at an innocuous piece of paper and wishing that she was a Firebender so that she could burn the damn thing to ashes. 

Her sensitive ears picked up the sound of her master's light footsteps and her frowned deepened as she heard her master chuckle lightly to herself. "Little one, destroying that innocent paper is not going to solve anything."

Toph's disgruntled gaze shifted to her master, "No. But it would make me feel better." She growled at the amused twinkle in her master's eyes. "You know that I will not force you to go if you truly do not want to. The decision is yours and yours alone."

Toph was well aware of that fact; it was one of the reasons that she was so irritated. There was no one to blame for the situation but herself. "That just makes it worse sifu." She dropped the paper with a sigh. "I don't know if I'm ready to face this yet… To face _them_ yet" she admitted softly.

Her master pulled Toph into her arms, and Toph returned the embrace, burying her face into her sifu's neck. "I don't think I'm ready to forgive them master." Her master rubbed Toph's back in soothing circles, "There is no need for you to worry yourself with that just yet. You will forgive in time, if not in this life then in the next, of that I have no doubt." The petite woman held her student at arm's length, her bright green eyes holding Toph's frosted jade. "Go for yourself, Toph. Go for no one but yourself."

Toph shivered slightly at the fierceness of her master's words. Normally she was fast to smile and even faster to laugh. With such a carefree attitude, it was easy to forget that this woman was one of the most powerful beings in the four kingdoms.

Unable to speak, Toph nodded her understanding. Her master held her gaze for a few moments longer and released her, her serious face immediately slipping into a playful smile. "I'm going to go see if that poor messenger is still in one piece. Did you really have to bury him in quicksand after throwing him off the cliff? I thought he was going to wet himself."

Toph smirked at the memory of the man's fear as she shunted him off the edge. "He deserved it for being such a pompous ass. Besides, I didn't break any bones." Her master snorted, "Well I suppose that's something to be thankful for. I don't think the Fire Lord would be pleased to have his messenger returning home on a stretcher."

With that, her master gracefully glided out of the room, leaving Toph to her thoughts.

Toph picked up the discarded paper, her eyes sweeping over the graceful characters for the hundredth time since she had received it.

_Mistress Toph Bei Fong,_

_Your presence is cordially requested at the inaugural meeting of the Counsel of Four Nations. As a citizen of the Earth Kingdom, and for your role in the restoration of the Earth Kingdom, the Water Nation, and the Air Tribes, we humbly ask that you act as a general advisor to the counsel. The Counsel would be honored by your acquiescence. _

_The Counsel will convene on the summer solstice in the Fire Nation. The messenger will await your reply._

Toph traced the official seals of the four nations with a fingertip and jotted a terse acceptance with firm strokes, sealing her reply with the official Bei Fong signet before she could change her mind.

The messenger apprehensively accepted the paper before bowing hastily and stumbling out of the gates. Toph watched him go with a mixture of nervousness and resigned determination. Things were changing again and she had no choice but to be ready for it.

xXXx

Toph obstinately threw herself into her work. She trained until her legs refused to support her weight; she read feverishly about politics, philosophy, military strategy and conflict resolution until her vision blurred. At the end of each day she would stumble into bed, letting exhaustion take her until the next dawn when she would wake up and do the whole thing over again.

After two weeks her master was fed up with watching her self-destructive behavior and threatened bodily harm until Toph promised to take a few days off. With her master's dire threats still ringing in her ears, she set off for the caves.

As Toph entered the world of darkness, she felt her eyes drift shut of their own accord. She expertly picked her way through caverns that would have left others going in hopeless circles. She stopped when she got to her favorite meditation spot, a space that was more of a small room than a proper cavern, and sat with her back pressing against the cool rock wall. Her senses expanded as she relinquished control and relaxed. Toph felt her worries drift away as she cocooned herself in her element.

Here in the darkness it was impossible to tell where she began and where the rock ended; human and earth blending together until one was indistinguishable from the other. Her muscles relaxed and she let out a slow breath. She had spent most of her life blind so the darkness was like coming home to an old friend. Her mind wandered aimlessly for what could have been seconds or hours. But gradually it came to rest on the moment that had changed her world. The moment that had started her on the path that led to her life as she now knew it.

The moment when she realized that she didn't want to be blind anymore. The moment when she realized that she would do _anything_ to see.

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Author's Note: 

I hope that you have enjoyed it so far! I know that it may be confusing at first, but please give me some time to get going. Everything will make sense eventually, I promise. I would appreciate any comments or constructive criticism you might have. Remember, flames will only feed the fire.


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